Editor's note: This article originally ran March 16, 2004, in the Des Moines Register. It was part of a series on Des Moines historical sites called "Meet Me On The Corner." Dates have been updated.

The 84-year-old Argonne Armory at East First and Des Moines streets has served a variety of federal, county and city agencies over the years. The planning of an armory along the river dates back to at least 1911.

A July 5, 1911, story in The Evening Tribune headlined "River Front Armory Site Is Assured" said the facility would keep a full battalion of the Iowa National Guard in Des Moines. The units of the guard present in the city at the time and a medical corps rented armory space in the riverfront Coliseum.

The money and the planning wouldn't come together for years. Construction of the armory was spearheaded by the Argonne American Legion Post 60. The post, incorporated in December 1919, was named in honor of the men who fought in World War I's battle in the Argonne forest.

The Argonne post asked the city to donate land for the armory. Des Moines provided the site in September 1933, creating a location for the last of seven civic buildings constructed along the river as part of the City Beautiful Movement.

The architectural firm of Tinsley, McBroom and Higgins designed the armory, and on Oct. 19, 1933, the construction contract was awarded to Arthur H. Neumann and Brothers.

A federal grant of $65,000 from the Works Progress Administration provided a base for the building, but the sale of $175,000 in revenue bonds to finance the remainder of the building costs proved more challenging. Some residents questioned the need for the armory, and the state was asked to decide the legality of the bond sale.

Once the bond sale was approved, ground was broken for the $240,000 Argonne Armory in July 1934. The two-story Art Deco building was designed to house 10 Iowa National Guard units, the Argonne post, the auxiliary of the American Legion, and state legion and auxiliary offices.

The basement was designed for National Guard storage and a rifle range. The legion dining room, kitchen and club rooms were also housed in the basement, along with quarters for custodians who would be on the job 24 hours a day.

The first floor featured a drill hall that could be used as a gymnasium and a 500-seat auditorium. There were also locker rooms and offices for both the guardsmen and the legion.

National Guard offices and club rooms were on the second floor, along with two classrooms and the headquarters of the Iowa Department of the Legion, the Argonne post and the auxiliary units.

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Des Moines is seeking developer interest in the city-owned Argonne Armory Building shown here Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018, that is located along the Des Moines Riverfront and in the thriving East Village Neighborhood of Downtown Des Moines. (Photo: Rodney White/The Register)

Completed in May 1935, the armory was often rented for sporting or theatrical events. The Iowa National Guard's lease expired Jan. 1, 1954, and the units moved to the enlarged Red Horse Armory at Harding and Prospect roads.

The Argonne post's lease expired Dec. 31, 1954, at which time the building was turned over to the city.

The city has used the building for a variety of offices over the years. During the early 1980s, the Polk County Health Center also operated out of the armory until City Manager Richard Wilkey insisted the space be occupied by only city offices.

The Des Moines Plan and Zoning Commission moved from City Hall to the armory's old gymnasium in 1963, but it was 15 years before the former drill hall was renovated into traditional office space. Two floor levels, carpet, air conditioning and offices replaced the high ceilings and temporary partitions. Air conditioning was most welcomed by employees, who could end the tradition of raising a red flag to warn the indoor temperature was above 100 degrees.

More than 8 feet of water destroyed files and carried dead fish down the hallways during the floods of 1993.

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Workers sandbag beside the Argonne Armory on the east side of the rapidly rising Des Moines River on June 10, 2008.(Photo: Register File Photo)

Argonne Armory

BUILT FOR: Iowa National Guard and a post of the American Legion.

FINANCED BY: Works Progress Administration and revenue bonds.

OCCUPIED BY: A variety of city offices for the past 50 years.

UNUSUAL OCCUPANTS: Flood of 1993 washed dead fish and debris into the armory.